Who Leaders Are … What Leaders Do

By Shawn McGuirk,
Assistant Director for Residential Life and Judicial Affairs
Boston College

Leadership: n. a person or thing that leads. – Random House Dictionary

But what do we mean when we use this term? When we say that someone is a leader, or has leadership qualities? How do we know? What attributes do we identify when making a statement such as this? How does anyone know what a true leader is and what a true leader does? In essence; what makes someone a leader?

I may think that someone is a leader because they’re honest, hard working, forthright, and have demonstrated an ability to make important decisions. You may believe that these attributes are applicable, but that it is preferable for someone to be superbly intelligent, or that a person can motivate others and “make things happen.”

So what is the “correct” definition of leadership? The truth is that the qualities of leadership will manifest themselves in others several different ways and at various times. We can take a look at history and quickly discover that the qualities of leadership in one person will be quite different than in another.

To some, John F. Kennedy was a passionate, strong, effective and bold leader who was able to make the most difficult decisions and inspire others. Someone else may prefer to emulate a leader the likes of Mother Theresa, who gave of herself selflessly so that others may survive and flourish. Yet another may decide to look within their household; a parent, a sibling, or a child.

And so amidst the definitions of leadership, and those that personify these definitions, I submit that all of them have something in common. And so this will serve as my personal definition on the topic:

Leadership: n. a person or thing that demonstrates the courage to do something differently.

I would challenge anyone to argue this point. Whether those we think of as leaders lead a million people or one does not matter. What does matter is that they have discovered a way to inspire those they lead. I don’t think the importance of being able to inspire another can be overstated. As Dale Carnegie states in his book How to Win Friends and Influence People:

“There is only one way under heaven to get anybody to do anything…and that is by making the other person want to do it.” (p. 18)

I believe that there are 4 things we must be able to do if we are going to be effective leaders. They are:

Be courageous enough to shift paradigms and see things differently

I refer back to my personal definition of leadership. That a person must be able to change focus, recognize that there is another way, and then move in that direction. Colin Powell once said that effective leadership means that others are willing to follow you if only out of curiosity. What better way to instill curiosity than to promote the flow of creative thinking and action?

Help those we lead find meaning in what we are asking them to do

Let’s face it, we have all been told to do things we may not have wanted to do. It’s a fact of life. So how do we help people find meaning in what must be done? We invest in them. We show concern, we communicate, and we talk with them and not at them. I’ll share one sure-fire way to find out what’s important to people (it’s complex, so you might want to write this down) - we ask them.

Create involvement of the process for those we are leading

Related to step #2 - Once we know what it is people want (what has meaning) we can begin to get them involved in the process. How? We provide opportunity for professional growth, which in turn demonstrates to them that we trust that they will do what needs to be done. I remember someone saying during a lecture once that it’s impossible to motivate people because they are already motivated, and it’s our job to find out what that motivation is and help them redirect it into completing the task at hand.

Reward and recognize achievement.

This should be self-explanatory and obvious. Too often I have heard people say that if you reward and recognize too much then it loses its meaning. WRONG! How many of us come home from a long day at work thinking, “my boss praised me way too much today.” I’ll tell you - no one thinks that. And no one else will think that if steps 1-3 are done in advance. Instead it will continue to reaffirm in others that you think they are doing a good job, and that you think enough of them to include them in the process of decision-making. Understand that by this I do not suggest that they will be making the decisions, but those you are trying to lead will inevitably “buy-in” to your decisions if they know that their opinions on the matter have been heard.

So what is it that makes someone a leader? Ultimately I believe that an effective leader will constantly be in the process of creating leaders. How? By having the courage to shift focus and try things differently, creating meaning and involvement, and rewarding and recognizing improvement and a job well done.

As Wuzu said to Fojian, “When you give people tasks, probe them deeply to see if they are sincere… Leaders are naturally honored when their words are taken seriously; the community is naturally impressed when people are chosen for their sincerity.” (Zen Lessons, The Art of Leadership p. 18)

Note: This article is adapted from a similar article written by the author that appeared in the September 99 Talking Stick.

About the Author

Shawn is Assistant Director for Residential Life and Judicial Affairs at Boston College. He has been involved in ACPA, ASJA and NEACUHO. He has presented on topics of leadership, communication, conflict resolution and supervision. Give him a good cup of coffee and conversation and he’s happy.